AVGVSTVS Information by Tanaquil Sergius This is not the name of a Roman Gens. The name is a so called cognomen, a nickname, as the Romans used to add these to their first and family names. Augustus literally means: "the elevated one" (from the Latin verb "augere", "to enlarge", "to expand", "to elevate"). This cognomen was first used by C. Iulius Caesar Octavianus, who was given this name by the Roman Senate in 27 BCE, when he decided not to step down from governmental office. His various successors and their successors were all given this name as a result of their status of being heir to the imperium. In the 3rd century CE, the Roman Empire had been divided into two main parts, an eastern and a western part, both ruled by an emperor called "Augustus". Each "Augustus" would be assisted in his rule by a "Caesar". Above: a so called "primaporta" head of Augustus. Here he looks still quite young, rather like of an age that he was still referred to as Octavianus; Below: another head of the young Augustus, probably still referred to as Octavianus, although this image may seem of a later date than the image above. Note Augustus' typical hairdo on the bust; various historians mention his sturdy hair, which he never really cared about.